Understanding how the brain learns and controls complex skills is one of the crucial problems of neuroscience. In both humans and animals, "motor exploration" - the process by which the brain generates variations in behavior in order to learn - is critical for both the initial learning of a skill and for the recovery of motor function following neurological injuries. In prior research, motor exploration has been assumed to be a random process. In the proposed research, we will evaluate the hypothesis that motor exploration is not a random process, but rather a systematic exploration, of many patterns of brain activity that might be used to achieve the desired output. Understanding how motor exploration is implemented biologically would not only answer a key basic question in neuroscience but would also open doors for creation of new approaches to rehabilitative therapies.
We will achieve these goals by collecting data from the vocal control system in songbirds and by creating novel mathematical tools that can be applied to data from any species. Vocal learning in songbirds shares many behavioral similarities to speech learning, providing one of the few non-human systems in which to examine how the brain learns and controls the sound signals that allow individuals to communicate with each other. Our experimental and computational studies will reveal how the nervous system coordinates the precisely-timed patterns of electrical activity that allow songbirds to explore different vocal outputs in order to produce the desired sound. These studies will, enhance our understanding of complex behavior, create novel analysis techniques for use by other researchers. Additionally, as part of this award we will engage with local middle school teachers to create educational resources for enhancing public education in neuroscience, create training opportunities for graduate students from under-represented groups, and write a textbook on how mathematical tools arising from physics can best be applied to biological problems.
This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.
